Almost half of the land in Wyoming is owned by the federal government, generally protected for public uses. It is drier and windier than the rest of the country, being split between semi-arid and continental climates with greater temperature extremes. Wyoming's western half is covered mostly by the ranges and rangelands of the Rocky Mountains, while the eastern half of the state is high-elevation prairie called the High Plains. The state capital and most populous city is Cheyenne, which had an estimated population of 63,957 in 2018. With a population of 576,851 in the 2020 United States census, Wyoming is the least populous state despite being the 10th largest by area, with the second-lowest population density after Alaska. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to the south. Wyoming ( / w aɪ ˈ oʊ m ɪ ŋ/ ⓘ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Horned lizard ( Phrynosoma douglassi brevirostre) Wyoming Indian paintbrush ( Castilleja linariifolia)
